Page 70 - Forbes India (December 2015)

Forbes IndIa leadershIp serIes leadIng From the Front

‘Identify and Act upon Emerging Trends’

Ajay Piramal
Chairman, Piramal Group

Q What are some of the
leadership decisions and
choices you have made in your
journey as an entrepreneur?
Leadership, according to me, is the
ability to identify emerging trends—
look at what they are before they
are identified by a lot more people. I
mean, take decisions, early decisions.
We identified that textiles would be a
problem before others did. Similarly,
when we entered pharmaceuticals,
it was a contrarian approach.

Q What makes a great leader
stand out over someone who is
just very good at his or her job?
Firstly, what is a leader’s job? A
leader’s job is to develop a good
quality team and set a vision for the
company. The leader must be able
to anticipate what the environment
is going to be before others can do
so, and then show the courage to go
and follow that. It requires a lot of
courage to take certain decisions,
which may be contrarian.

Q Would you say leading
from the front is about taking
courageous decisions? you take the right action, then you Q What are the principles
Definitely. A good leader has to have will get the right results. Result is you always keep in mind?
the courage to take a decision. The nothing but action in another form. Face battles with equanimity.
leader should be able to say, ‘I think One can work hard but one can’t
this industry is going to be good’. Q You have spoken about the predict the outcome. There will be
Frankly, it is at such crucial times Bhagavad Gita in the media as well, good times and there will be bad
that leadership really matters. and we know that the values of the times, but one has to, to the extent
Piramal Group are a reflection of possible, take things in one’s stride.
Q When large sums of money are the values of the Piramal family.
involved or when a business fails, The Bhagavad Gita covers all aspects Q Which leaders have
how do you maintain equanimity? of leadership and management. deeply influenced you?
The key is that you accept both It teaches you to perform your If you look at Mahatma Gandhi’s life,
the highs and the lows; you retain action well and the results will that is what has deeply influenced
an even mind. That’s what the follow. It teaches you not to grieve me. Here was a man barely 5 feet 3
dInesh krIshnan also says, do not worry about the and principles that distinguish lawyer, and yet he could take on
Bhagavad Gita teaches, too. The Gita
over losses. It teaches fearlessness
inches tall, not a great or successful
great leaders from others. It also
the mightiest empire in the world
results, focus on the action because
and force them to bend down.
if you focus on the action and if
teaches trusteeship and humility.
70 | FORBES INDIA DECEMBER 11, 2015